4 Healthy Ways to Prepare Crimini Mushrooms

4 Healthy Ways to Prepare Crimini Mushrooms

Crimini mushrooms provide a healthy, hearty addition to lots of different recipes. You can include them in recipes you already enjoy making, or you can incorporate new meals into your plan in order to take advantage of this mushroom’s rich flavor and health benefits. These mushrooms are an excellent source of selenium, which is known to help fight cancer. They also provide a good source of niacin in addition potassium and the three essential B vitamins. Five medium crimini mushrooms have only 20 calories, making them a great food to help maintain a healthy diet. Consider these ideas to help incorporate more mushrooms into your diet.

1. Pita Pizza

This makes a great, easy lunch you can have at home or at work. Simply spread an all natural pizza or spaghetti sauce on top of a whole wheat pita bread and then top the pizza with plenty of chopped crimini mushrooms, fresh bell peppers, olives, spinach and a sprinkle of feta cheese. Either put it in the microwave for up to three minutes or until heated through, or bake it in the oven at 350 degrees for seven to nine minutes.

2. Crimini Mushrooms and Rice

This side dish is a perfect accompaniment to lean meat or soup dishes. It’s filling, full of nutrition and fiber, and it couldn’t be easier to make. Simply sauté a few clove of chopped garlic and half a dozen diced mushrooms in a tablespoon of olive oil. Once the garlic has browned, add two cups of cooked brown rice and add a little broth if desired. Cook it until the flavors have melded together for a rich, wholesome dish that won’t leave you hungry soon after you eat it.

3. Stuffed Bell Peppers

Crimini mushrooms and bell peppers go great together both in texture and in taste. They’re also both low in calories and virtually fat free so stuffed peppers makes for a lean, nutritious meal. Choose your favorite color and cut the tops off of them so you can clean out the insides. Consider mixing chopped mushrooms with things like brown rice, walnuts, spinach, broccoli, red pepper flakes or anything that sounds good. Then, simply stuff the peppers and put them in the oven at 300 degrees for about 30 minutes. Serve with a huge green salad and enjoy!

4. Spaghetti a La Mushrooms

By simply replacing your normal meaty ingredients in spaghetti with crimini mushrooms, you save yourself literally hundreds of calories and many calories in fat. You don’t lose the meaty texture which the mushrooms help to provide, and you enhance the flavor of everything else in the dish. Consider adding corn, green beans and chunks of tomato to the mushrooms and sauce to create a filling, satisfying spaghetti meal that the whole family will enjoy. You can also replace the meats in dishes like chili, dips and soups with crimini mushrooms if you want to put a healthy spin on some of your favorite meals.

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Great piece and some yummy sounding recipes.

Some more interesting facts about mushrooms:

- Mushrooms are extremely rich in protein, more than any other vegetable, so are a great alternative protein source for vegetarians

- The high levels of potassium, iron and phosphorous found in mushrooms is good for blood pressure, healthy levels of red blood cells and teeth and bones (respectively)

- A good source of dietary fibre, mushrooms also help you to feel full for longer as well as helping promote healthy bowel function